Selenophobia
by xPaige Turnerx
Summary: Outcasted by the Shifters from the Res, the Cullen Vampires, and the humans of Forks, Bella's forced to forge her own path through this new and frightening world, building her family as she goes. But was this isolation meant to alienate her or protect her from those she cares about the most? Will they come back around when they learn her new dark secret? Will she let them? A/B Es/C


**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or anything familiar you read here. I'm borrowing some stuff from this and that - novels, shows, myths, etc.**

**Rated: T.**

**Author: Paige Turner.**

**Summary: Outcasted by the Shifters from the Res, the Cullen Vampires, and the humans of Forks, Bella's forced to forge her own path through this new and frightening world, building her family as she goes. But was this isolation meant to alienate her or protect her from those she cares about the most? Will they come back around when they learn her new dark secret? Will she let them? A/B Es/C Em/R Ed/Br J/K. **

_Side of the Highway, Halfway between La Push and Forks_

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**.**

**.**

There was a loud ringing in her ears that vibrated against her skull and down her spine, setting her nerves on fire. She wasn't sure if it was muffling all other noise out, or if it was just that unnaturally silent, so she forced her heavy eyelids to open. At first she saw nothing, just white and it was enough to make her heart jerk painfully in her chest. Was she blind? But everything came bleeding back into vision eternal seconds later, fuzzy and unfocused, but at least it was there. It was easier to focus on the stars up in the unusually clear night sky, moonlight shining on leaves of a tree above her.

She took a shaky, shallow breath, feeling her ribs scream at the action. Or was that her voice? Her blue eyes flickered to the side, her cracked windshield caved in, digging into her shoulder. As if seeing it triggered the pain, her brain finally registered the searing fire in her body. Her shoulder stung while her ribs throbbed, she couldn't feel one of her legs while she wished she couldn't feel the other, and her side was on fire. That was all not including the heavy fuzziness in her head.

Looking back up, she noticed her driver's side door was missing. The metal frame was bent and gnarled, like someone had ripped the thing right off her truck and-

A numb cloud of darkness descended upon her, forcing her eyes closed and her body to relax again. It called softly to her, like a siren singing her to sleep, oh so tempting. The pain lessened, her fear floating away, the ringing getting dulled out…

Bella pinched her thigh, the black cloud dispersing, the shadows' grip on her loosening. She had to stay awake, she didn't know why, but it was important. She needed to be awake.

**.**

**.**

**.**

_"Bells, I'm heading out soon. What should I pick up for dinner?" Charlie called from the living room. His voice was normal but those brown eyes were hard, tired, as he stared at the screen._

_A few moments later his daughter came down the stairs and into the living room. She pressed her lips into a thin line when she saw what he was watching, walking over to his chair. "Still no leads?"_

_"No," he sighed, rubbing his chin. "I just don't get it, this is the fourth death now and no one knows anything." Charlie shook his head, getting to his feet. "Make sure you lock the door tonight, Seattle isn't so far away, Bella. And you know where I keep my spare pistol, right?"_

_Blue eyes narrowed at her father. "Unfortunately yes. I told you I don't like having it in the house with Addy here. What if she gets her hands on it?" The brunette crossed her arms over her chest, looking up at the ceiling where the little girl was napping above. _

_"She can't reach up in the closet, Bells. And it's for protection, you're both safer having it here." The crinkles around his eyes grew as he tried to lighten the mood. "'Sides, I was already teaching you how to be safe with guns when __**you**__ were three. Look at ya now, sharp shooter extraordinaire."_

_Bella cracked a smile, but it slowly faded as the images on the TV caught her attention. "Was there another flower this time?"_

_"Hm," Charlie grunted, his shoulders slumping. "Another black rose. They're keeping two boys with the body at all times, and hopefully catch the sicko who keeps stealing them." He walked to the front door, buckling his gun belt around his waist. "Did you hear they're bringing the Doc in for 'assistance'?"_

_Her brows furrowed. "Doctor Cullen? Why?"_

_"He's got all kinds of expertise they wanna take advantage of, I guess." Charlie said. "I'm surprised his kids aren't leaking stuff out already, seems like all anyone can talk about around here anymore."_

_"They're not the type," Bella shrugged. "Keep to themselves about everything else, I can't imagine them talking about their father's work too. Jessica, maybe," she chuckled. The younger girl was an absolute ruthless gossip, it was all Bella could do to keep her at bay about her own personal life._

_Charlie studied his daughter while he put on his coat. "She hasn't found out about…you know, Addy and stuff, has she?" The brunette quickly shook her head and Charlie nodded. "Good, that's good. No one's giving you a hard time about anything else?"_

_"No, dad. Everything's fine, they all think I failed a couple times," Bella sighed. "You should go or you're going to be late."_

_"Right, right." Charlie made his way out the door, poking his head back in the last second. "Remember, lock this door. And it's in the blue shoe box in my closet."_

_"Bye, dad." Bella said purposefully. He hesitated, nodding again before leaving for work._

**.**

**.**

**.**

She whimpered, her side feeling like someone had lit it aflame. Bella tried to move, her mind more clear, focused on getting up. Something was obviously wrong and she just…she needed to not be here.

As near as she could tell, her truck was on its side, so she had to have been in some kind of accident. She reached up to her head, hissing as her temple stung and brought her hand back down. Warm, sticky blood laced her fingers and she looked down at herself, trying to determine just how badly she was injured. There was more crimson staining her neck and the collar of her shirt, down from the side of her face. There was a bigger and wetter puddle on her stomach from her side, the passenger door beneath her catching the blood, leaking out through the cracks onto the pavement beneath. Her right shoulder was…she didn't look very long, just enough to know that quite a bit of her windshield was embedded in it.

Had someone crashed into her?

Her memories were…fuzzy at best, and seemed to be escaping her.

Surely if someone had crashed into her, they'd come to make sure she was okay. Right? They wouldn't leave her there on the side of the road. There was nothing but highway and trees for miles!

Unless they were hurt, too. Maybe worse.

Bella tried to push herself up, crying out in pain and collapsing back against the door. "H…" She cleared her throat, her voice raspy and breaking. "H-hello?" If they were as injured as she was, they needed to stay awake for the paramedics too.

What if they had a family? Kids with them?

"Are you ok-okay?!" Bella called louder, reaching with her good arm for the steering wheel. She had to try and get out of the truck, just enough to see them. To make sure they weren't dead.

What if… what if the collision killed them? What if she killed them?

The brunette ground her teeth together, her fingers brushing against the wheel. "Answer me!"

**.**

**.**

**.**

_"Answer me right this second, Isabella." _

_She flinched back, wringing her hands. Charlie __**never **__called her by her whole name, not unless it was serious. Not that this wasn't serious, it was probably the most serious moment of her life, but she still wasn't prepared for such anger. _

_Her blue eyes slowly met his dark brown ones, fear spilling out from them, enough for Charlie's face to soften some. "I-I think so," she mumbled quietly, sobs already choking her voice._

_Charlie's rigid stance fell, his face falling into his hands. He wanted to scream and yell and cuss at her, to scare her back through time and stop her from doing it. To fix this, to make it go away so his baby girl wouldn't have to go through it. To make everything okay for her. But he couldn't, it was too late. Her life was ruined, before it had even really began. The hardships she was going to have to face, the sacrifices she was going to have to make._

_The responsibilities, the cruelty, everything. Her innocence and freedom that came with being a teenager stolen from her because of one mistake. _

_He took a deep breath, straightening his shoulders. "No, you can't 'think so' anymore, Bella. You can't skirt around truths, take the easy way out. Not anymore. Things are different now…but I'm going to help you. I…I'll help you do this."_

_The dam in her broke, tears spilling down her cheeks as she shook her head. "No, I can't! Dad, please, can't I just - maybe I could still - we could get an - please, dad! I can't!"_

_"It's too late, Bella." Charlie said, blinking back his own tears. "You have to be strong now, not just for you, but for them too. You __**can**__ do this, okay? Trust me."_

_Her lip quivered and she took a shuddering breath, fighting to hold back her sobbing. There was something in Charlie's eyes, a love that was strong, that was protective. He was going to be there for her, he always would. _

_Maybe it was her hormones already, or maybe he gave her his strength, but suddenly she felt like she could breathe again. Her hand slowly raised up to the small bump in her belly, the hollowness in her chest filling with a small, but burning warmth. _

_"Dad…I'm pregnant."_

**.**

**.**

**.**

_The brunette looked around her and Addy's room for the last time, the bare walls, empty bed, and barren dressers. It was weird to see it so…empty. It was even weirder to think they were moving it all back to Forks again, that she was finally returning to her home. Not that Renee and Phil's apartment hadn't become like a home to her over the three years she had stayed with them. It was nice, safe. The memories she and Addy made there had turned the place into…into Addy's home._

_"Are you sure you're okay with this, baby girl?" Bella asked, looking down at her daughter standing next to her. _

_The little girl gazed up at her mother, a beaming smile on her face. "Dedushka says there are raccoons and squirrels and birds and bears and-"_

_"Lots of animals, yes, I know." Bella interrupted. She loved her daughter, but the girl could go on and on about animals for hours. As it was, she had already broken the brunette down enough to let her get a bunny, a cute little black thing with blue eyes, just like her daughter. She smiled, crouching down to tuck a lock of Addy's black hair behind her ear. It was getting so long now… "But you know that we'll be __**living**__ there from now on, right Adrienne? We won't be coming back here."_

_"As long as we can bring Maximo!" The tiny girl declared, her fist shooting up into the air._

_Bella's own blue eyes rolled before she scooped Addy up over her shoulder, the girl squealing in delight. "I don't know, Charlie might want to cook him for dinner…"_

_"What?" Addy gasped. "Momma, nooooo! We can't __**eat**__ Maximo!" She shrieked. _

_"Little bit of salt and ketchup-"_

_"__**Momma!**__"_

_**.**_

_**.**_

_**.**_

_Charlie and Bella watched Addy run off to the living room with her bunny in her arms, telling him about Forks and other bunny friends, and how she had her own room. Of course, Charlie missed most of it, trying to pick his chin up off the floor. He turned to his daughter, clearing his throat. "You weren't kidding when you said you were going to teach her Russian…"_

_Her shoulders rose and fell in a shrug as she watched her daughter set Maximo on the floor, laying down next to him while she continued to chat with him. "We had a deal, she wouldn't ask about her father if I taught her his language." Her smile faltered. "She wants so badly to know him, to see him, but I… I don't even know his name, dad. It was the only thing I could think of."_

_"It's nice," Charlie quickly reassured. He chuckled when her blue eyes landed on him. "Well, confusing for me, but nice. What, uh, what did she call me?"_

_"Dedushka? It means grandpa." Bella bit her lip. "Listen, dad, I just wanted to thank you. I know how much work it was sending me out to Renee, and sending money. Visiting on the holidays and…well, all the work you've gone through to help me. Even setting up a story back here so I can go back to school."_

_Charlie grunted, looking away. "Don't worry about that, kiddo. I'm just happy to finally have you back, and having Adrienne here is a bonus. She's a bright little one ya got there."_

_"Right?!" Bella gushed, reaching out to grab her father's shoulder excitedly. "She's so smart and polite, and so funny! Dad, she told me this joke about Mr. Turtle and Froo Froo the dog yesterday-" She finally caught herself, blushing deeply. "Sorry, I don't get to gush about her often."_

_Laughing, Charlie joined his granddaughter in the living room, looking up to smile at Bella. "This is going to be great, Bells. Just you see. I'm so proud of you."_

**.**

**.**

**.**

When had she closed her eyes?

Bella struggled to open them again, shaking off the numb cloud that had once again settled on her. How long had she been out? She felt glass digging into her palm and it slowly brought her a small amount of clarity. She groaned, looking around the trashed cab of her truck, her eyes widening as they took in the dozens of black and red roses.

Her mind reeled back to the previous day, Charlie talking about the case in Seattle. Black roses…stolen bodies…

"No," she whispered, her heart hammering painfully in her chest while her blue eyes flickered to the windshield.

She couldn't see much, whether it was because of the pain in her head, or the blood in her eyes. But she could make out the paved road stretching on and on before her. There was some glass…and was that her door, twisted up and bent in half a few yards in front of her? Endless amounts of trees lined either side of the highway, shadows dancing in them.

A cold chill of fear trailed down her spine.

Her phone.

She could call Charlie.

Bella used her good hand, patting her pockets, trying to remember if she had her phone on her. They were empty, and the fact that she couldn't actually feel her hand patting them, was enough to set her off.

The pain in her side and shoulder amplified and she screamed while she twisted around, trying to feel for her phone beneath her. Glass sliced her fingertips open, while blood started running down from her shoulder to her elbow.

"Adrienne," she uttered, the thought of her daughter giving her enough strength to keep searching. Furiously growing more panicked, more wild, Bella shoved all the roses around, ripping them up from the door beneath her until she finally spotted her phone in the corner.

The screen was cracked and half of it remained black when she turned it on, but it started ringing the second she hit 911. On the second ring someone's muffled voice answered her. "Please help me," she whispered. "Car accident and roses - please…Charlie Swan is my dad…"

"Bella? Bella, where are you?"

She blinked at the familiar voice. "Officer Cortez? I-"

There was a flash of a shadow that crossed in front of the windshield, one that had her voice dying mid-sentence.

"Bella? Bella!"

Adrenaline poured into her veins, her pupils dilating as she tried to see out of the windshield again. "I saw something. Something's here with me! Please help!"

"Where are you?"

"I was coming back from the res-" Again, an enormous shadow passed by the window before her phone cut out.

She dropped it, huddling back against the roof of the truck.

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**.**

_Leah nervously ran her hand through her long hair, fidgeting on the fallen tree trunk. Her dark eyes scanned the beach for her old friend again, looking back down to her watch. It had been three years since Bella had left, three years since her best friend and biggest crush had moved to Phoenix because of the pregnancy. Leah had been the only one Bella had told, other than Charlie, after it had happened, and the girl swore to take the secret to her grave._

_So much had happened since then, for both of them. Bella sent emails now and then but was pretty busy with being a new mommy, and Leah herself had gone through…drastic changes. The first female shifter in two hundred years. Then her brother, Jake, Claire, and Quil. Their entire group._

_Sometimes Leah felt like it was best that Bella had moved. They would have been forbidden to stay such close friends, and it would have felt like they pushed her out of the group cruelly. Still…three years felt like an eternity and Leah was starting to get impatient waiting for the brunette._

_"Look at you, all old like me now." _

_Leah whipped around at the familiar but different voice, her eyes taking in the differences of her old friend. Bella's hair had gotten darker, longer, her body filling out, more curves from the pregnancy. Her light blue eyes flashed in amusement, her skin still as pale as ever, even after years in the Phoenix sun. Her face was sharper now, elegant like a young woman's, her aura…more mature. _

_"We're not old," Leah grinned, getting up from the fallen trunk. "Just less young."_

_Musing to herself, Bella nodded. "Sometimes I forget I'm only nineteen. Addy makes me feel ancient." _

_"Don't tell me you're one of those moms who can't talk about anything but their kids," Leah joked, hugging her friend. She felt her heart skip a beat, taking in Bella's strawberry/freesia scent. _

_The brunette scowled playfully. "Unfortunately no, I'm the adoring older sister here in Forks. Look at you, you're a giant!"_

_"Yeah, I guess so…" The shifter made an uncomfortable face, quickly trying to change the subject. "So that sucks you have to finish high school with all those younger kids. I couldn't do it, I'd rather skip it all."_

_"Not all of us have charming good looks to fall back onto. Some of us need an education," Bella laughed, shoving her hands into her pockets. She felt…weird for some reason. Awkward almost. Like Leah was uncomfortable around her or something. _

_It was…wrong._

_The girl in question blushed, looking away into the trees. Her nostrils flared when she picked up Sam and Jake's scent. Her chest rumbled silently. "I'm sure you'll be fine." She said curtly._

_"Is something wrong, Leah? I feel like you're…I don't even know." Bella said with concern._

_Sam's words raced through her head, the dangers of having a human around, what happened to Emily. And now Bella had a daughter to worry about, she couldn't afford accidents like that. "Nothing's wrong, I just," she paused. But she couldn't let Bella go again, it was too hard the first time. _

_**"She doesn't belong here. You can't risk taking her from her child."**_

_The whispered words were carried on the wind, up to Leah's ears. Her dark eyes snapped up to the trees, meeting Sam and Jake's gazes. "Maybe we should catch up some other time. I've got things to do, Bella, I'm sorry. Sam's expecting me."_

_"What?" Her words caught up to Bella and blue eyes widened. "Wait, what?! You're… don't tell me you've joined Sam's Legion of Doom."_

_"Hey now," Leah grumbled, smothering her growl. Crush or not, someone mocking her pack leader didn't sit right in the girl's gut. "Sam's not bad, we just didn't get it back then. He does a lot around the community."_

_"Like brainwashing kids to join his little cult," Bella snorted. "Are you seriously with him now? A lot __**has**__ changed."_

_"Stop it, Bella." Leah said sternly. "He's a good guy and, and I don't need to explain myself to you. Who we choose to hangout with is none of your business." Irritation burned under her skin._

_The brunette bit her lip, her brows furrowed. "We? Like…all of you? You __**all**__ joined his cult? What happened while I was gone, mass head trauma?"_

_"Shut up!" Leah snapped, crossing her arms over her chest. She smothered the anger in her chest as Sam's warning rang in her head. Was he right? Just simple insults were building a small but fierce rage in her stomach. "We changed while you left, we're not like you anymore, Bella. I can see that now. Maybe you should leave."_

_Bella stepped forward, placing her hand on the girl's arm. "Wait, Leah. I just don't understand how you went from fearing that douche to idolizing him. He treated us like we were mere mortals amongst a god."_

_"Maybe I became a god too," she huffed. _

_"You're certainly acting like one of his jerk clones." Bella said with a dark look. "Maybe you do belong with him."_

_Leah dug her nails into her arms, biting back a snarl. "Just leave, Bella. Run back to your little brat and stay there."_

_Both girls kind of just stared at each other in astonishment for a moment. The anger Leah had left her in a breath, replaced with regret and shame. But that anger multiplied and infected Bella, her blue eyes turning to ice while a snarl formed on her lips. "How __**dare**__ you, Leah Clearwater! Talk about my daughter like that again and I'll beat the bitchiness out of you, got it?"_

_"I'm so sorry, Bella. I don't know why I said that, I'm so-"_

_The brunette roughly turned away, marching back through the sand. "Choke on your words, Leah. I'm done talking to you, call me when you're done being __**a god**__."_

_**.**_

**.**

**.**

She was starting to get cold and tired again.

Her teeth were chattering quietly while she huddled against the roof, her shoulder still screaming, her side a burning numbness. Bella clenched her jaw, trying to quietly shuffle forward to look out the windshield again. She hadn't seen anything for a while, and hadn't heard anything at all, though it could have been that painful ringing in her head.

By now she was fairly certain what was happening, had an idea.

She was dying.

The scared feelings she'd had turned to determination, her thoughts full of Addy and Charlie. She was _not_ going to die without a fight, to just abandon her child.

With that in mind, Bella lifted her good leg and kicked out, her foot going through the windshield. She did it over and over again, kicking out the glass, enough until it fell out and the cool night air blew into the cab of the truck. It brought with it the scent of the forest, rich moist dirt, the wood of the trees, airing out the metallic smell of blood.

Bella pushed forward, landing on her injured shoulder and cried out. Her scraped up hand reached out and touched the pavement as she pulled herself from the truck, a shuddering breath filling her lungs. The corners of her visions blurred but it didn't block out enough of the blinding light that shined in her eyes suddenly.

She hissed, ducking her head and didn't have time to brace herself for the screeching tires, skidding to a stop in front of her. A broken sob left her as a car door slammed shut, her vision going from blurry to black.

It was too late.

They were too late.

"Bella, please no. Keep your eyes open, please!"

The last thing she saw was a flash of spiky black hair and frantic golden eyes.

**.**

**.**

**.**

_"Thanks again for watching Addy, Angela. It was really appreciated, I'm on my way to pick her up now." Bella said into the phone, glaring out the windshield as she drove down the lone highway. Leah's words were still rattling around in her head and it was all she had not to turn around and make good on her threat. _

_When she heard Addy and Angela's little twin brothers laughing in the background, Bella's mood lightened up considerably. "No problem, Bella. I still think it's crazy how much the two of you look alike."_

_"Yup, hear that all the time." Bella said dismissively. "How is she? Was she good, didn't give you any trouble?"_

_"No, no, she's wonderful. So quiet and polite. All the Russian drive the twins wild but it's pretty funny."_

_Smiling to herself, Bella nodded. "Okay, well I should be there in twenty minutes tops. See you then, Angela."_

_The second she hung her phone up, it happened. Off in the distance a pair of yellow eyes flashed, reflecting the light back at her. At first she thought nothing of it until she realized just how high up from the ground the were, much higher than any animal could stand. Almost the height of a person…_

_When her eyes returned to the road she screamed at the monstrous form in front of her. She slammed on the breaks, her wide blue eyes locking with a pair of pale ones, an enormous clawed arm raising up and slamming down on the hood of the truck._

_Flipping forward, the old chevy sailed over the giant…thing, landing on the roof and rolling onto its side next to the road. Bella's hips and chest screamed in pain, the seat belt digging into her skin as she hung from it. Her vision swam and she blinked the dizziness away, struggling to look up out the windshield. _

_The empty road met her._

_Her blue eyes flickered down to the passenger door, her phone sitting on the window. She reached out, stretching to grab it, her fingertips brushing against it._

_The driver's side door disappeared, ripped off with a screech of metal and Bella didn't even have time to scream again as she came face to face with a beast. It opened its massive jaw, a howl shaking her entire truck, her bones. Her hands blindly searched for her buckle, pushing the button and letting her fall down further into her truck. She smacked the back of her head against the roof of the truck and tried to push herself into the corner._

_The beast crawled into the truck with her, its massive shoulders barely fitting. The thing's giant hand reached out, warm, fuzzy, and clawed fingers wrapping around her throat. Its large fangs flashed in the moonlight and Bella swore the thing grinned at her. _

**.**

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**.**

It was the very wee hours of the morning when the Doctor returned to his home, the purple bags under his eyes not from physical exhaustion but mental, and hunger. Blood had little to no effect on him anymore, but he found that his emotions and thirst were too closely tied to one another for it to be just merely coincidence. Could negative feelings trigger hunger?

That was just one more question he was going to have to add to his ever growing list.

Carlisle walked into the foyer of the manor, his nose buried in the files Chief Swan lent him earlier. "Esme?"

"In her office, finishing a call." Jasper said, turning the corner from the hall. He leaned against the wall, arms crossed over his chest, and a curly lock of blonde hair hanging in his golden eyes. "Did you run into Alice in the drive way?"

"I did not."

Jasper nodded, pressing his lips into a thin line. "Hm. She took off out of here, like a bat out of hell. Wouldn't say where she was going and didn't want anyone to come with her. I thought she might tell you."

"Carlisle?" The Matriarch of the family called softly, descending the twisting stair case at the far end of the foyer. Her carmel locks fell around a warm, heart shaped face, kind golden eyes brightening upon seeing her son and husband, a loving smile pulling at her ruby lips. Esme's gaze lowered to the files in Carlisle's hand, her own raising up to give a little wave as Jasper left them, returning to the living room. "What's this?"

The Doctor glanced back down at the papers in his hands, frowning absently. "The murders in Seattle, the ones we've been trying to track. I managed to convince Chief Swan to let me keep copies of the files."

"And? Is it vampires? Do the humans suspect?" Esme asked with concern, looking over the files herself.

"No," Carlisle replied. He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "The police are stumped, but they don't suspect anything supernatural. I was allowed to accompany Chief Swan to the newest crime scene, there was no scent."

"No vampires? Who could be doing this then, how would a human steal bodies so easily? And overpower such large boys?"

"No, Esme. There was _no_ scent. Just the victim's." Carlisle said, placing his hand on her arm. "I don't know how it's possible, but there was no vampire, no shifter, and no other human scent fresh enough to be the murderer's."

Turning from her husband with the files, Esme bit her lip as she walked back over to the stairs, on her way back to her office. "None of this makes sense. There are no patterns, no motive. None of these victims are related, other than being slightly outcasted and fit. Healthy, young, isolated teenage humans. Hmm." Carlisle followed his wife up the stairs, watching the gears turn in her mind. "It might be logical if a vampire was changing them, building their coven."

"None of the bodies had noticeable bloodloss," Carlisle piped in. "No wounds around the neck, wrists, or other major artery locations."

The Matriarch shook her head. "They died anyways, there's no point in stealing the bodies afterwards. Not unless they left evidence of their attack, like a bite mark. It's not vampire." She hummed to herself, kicking open her office door. "Shifters protect humans, not kill them. And they don't change, their born like that. It all points to humans."

"There's nothing we can do about it, then. It doesn't involve us anymore." Carlisle said, though his voice came out as more of a sigh.

It was horrible when his kind, or others like them, killed humans. But at least he and the others could do something about it.

Humans killing humans…they weren't allowed to stop that, they had no responsibility to interfere. If they did, it risked exposure.

Esme came to the same conclusion, nodding. She turned and handed the files back to her husband, smiling reassuringly. "I'm sure the police will solve it soon, dear. Be sure to tell Chief Swan he's wrong about the roses next time you see him, however."

"Pardon me?"

"Here," she pointed to one of the scribbled notes. "He assumes the black roses mean death. Black roses symbolize a new beginning, sometimes-" her eyes widened exponentially. "Rebirth. Black roses mean rebirth, literally, in this scenario."

Carlisle furrowed his brows. "What, the killer is trying to send a message?"

"No!" Esme ran her hands through her hair, pacing in front of him. "Carlisle, think about it. No one has seen anyone stealing bodies from the hospitals, or even personnel leaving with body bags." Still at a loss, Carlisle shrugged his shoulders. "It's because no one is _stealing_ them. They're walking out on their own. Rebirth, they enter the morgue on a stretcher, but walk out on their own."

"How is that possible?"

The Matriarch blurred out of the room, pulling her husband along by his hand. "Because this _is_ in our department, Carlisle. Humans can't come back to life. We need to hurry before this victim wakes up."

There was a new supernatural species in town.

**.**

**.**

**.**

The ring tone of her cell phone broke through the thick wall of unconsciousness around Bella's mind the next morning. She gasped, springing up into a sitting position, wide pale eyes frantically searching the room for any signs of danger.

Bella's chest rose and fell rapidly, her heart hammering in her chest. Her new eyes took in the details of her room, the sweater hanging on the back of her door, posters around her room, pictures Addy drew up on her walls.

She grabbed her shoulder, feeling the smooth pale skin, and lifted her shirt to look at her side. More smooth skin. She wiggled her fingers and toes, felt her temple, checked for any scrapes or wounds.

But there was no sign of her car accident at all.

"Was it a dream?" She asked herself, shaking her head.

Sighing, Bella reached for her phone on her dresser, blinking down at the seventeen missed calls from Angela.

"What happened last night?"

**.**

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**.**

**I should end this here before I try stuffing the entire story into one chapter. So many ideas, though!**

**Anyways, don't shoot me for starting a new story. It technically isn't really started yet, I'm just posting the intro here, like Shadows of Light. I may do it for other stories in the future too. I don't plan on continuing any of them, however, until I've finished the ones I've got on the go right now. I'm coming close with Magick though, and Instinct is on it's way to being done soon-ish too, that's why I've decided to get started on the intros for these new ones.**

**Plus, if I don't write it down, I'll just forget them, and we can't have that, can we?**

**Now, what do we have here? Bella has a kid? Whaaaaaaaat? I, myself, have no kid, nor any little children close to me in my life, so I really don't know if I'll accidentally make some kind of weird genius and unrealistic child. Forgive me if I start to do that, send me a note about it if you want. There's this one little girl -named Paige, crazy right!?- who comes to my work with her mom a lot, so I kinda base Addy on her a little bit. Just in the way that she uses full sentences and is pretty bright for her age -just turned four the other day-. Then I tossed in some of my own child characteristics. I was painfully shy, so pretty quiet and polite, mostly because I was scared of everyone. **

**Bella and Addy's relationship is going to be a big theme in this story. I've read a few good ones where they start out with Bella having a kid, but then it's as if they lose interest, and the focus turns to just Bella, or Bella and Alice. Her kid gets lost in the wind with Charlie and other side characters. That isn't going to happen in this story. While there will be a mega focus on Bella and Alice's romance later on, we shall not lose focus of Addy. She's very important to Bella and has her own role to play in this story. **

**As for Alice and Bella's relationship, it's going to be a rocky start. You'll have to bear with me with its pace. There will be plenty enough interaction between them, but it won't be a magical close friendship off the hop. There'll be lots of confusion and anger for a while, actually. **

**I'm also going to be introducing four main OC's in this story. Two of them you've met before -if you keep up with all my writing- and two new guys. One of which is the main Antagonist of the story, the others…you'll have to wait and see. **

**This is a really long author's note, but there's just so much to say! Do people read these through completely? I don't, I'm guilty of skimming. Sorry to any of you authors reading this. My bad.**

**This "new species" is pretty obvious, right? The whole pale eyes the colour of the moon? That enormous beast with the fangs, furry body, and clawed hands? Well, I won't flat out say it in case it's still a surprise for some of you, but those who know what it is, I'm borrowing some traits, most traits, from a TV show I will name later on. The name of the show would give it away too. But it's not EXACTLY the same as the show, similar enough where you might assume so, but some crucial details are different. Please pay attention to everything I write specifically about the species, or you may get confused. **

**Okay, I'm ending this ridiculously long author's note. Review please, kind sirs. **

**-Paige.**


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